David Ragan, driver of the No. 18 SNICKERS Xtreme Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), is looking to put together a full weekend in more ways than one as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series visits Phoenix International Raceway.
Ragan will make his third start as the interim driver filling in for the injured Kyle Busch, and he’s shown flashes of brilliance in his brief tenure. But as it is with many things in racing, gaining the much-sought-after team chemistry necessary to run at the front of the pack on a consistent basis takes time.
He and crew chief Adam Stevens have been near the top of the charts in practices at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway the last two weekends, along with some solid runs in qualifying, barely missing the final round in both races. However, the driver-crew chief duo is looking to put together an entire weekend as the most satisfying result is a solid showing in the final running order on race days. Thus, their undying focus on Sunday’s Sprint Cup CampingWorld.com 500k in the Arizona desert.
With the No. 18 team hungry for a solid finish this weekend in Phoenix, Ragan will sport the livery of SNICKERS Xtreme, a product name that was voted on by the fans on the SNICKERS Facebook page last year. The SNICKERS Xtreme version of the iconic candy bar is packed with just nuts and caramel and has been a popular choice among consumers since its return.
So as the Sprint Cup series heads to the “Valley of the Sun,” Ragan and company are hoping to not only put together strong practices and a qualifying session Friday, but a strong result Sunday for the SNICKERS Xtreme team, which would be quite satisfying knowing they are working on building a strong foundation to hand back over to Busch upon his return to the driver’s seat.
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